Life Runners

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
611672563
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2019, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Papillion, NE, USA
Phone
6186160555
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Right to Life

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$237,972
Expenses
$223,562
Assets
$239,543
Liabilities
$7,806

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

6 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PATRICK CASTLE (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • PATRICK CASTLE (PRESIDENT): $69,000 total reported compensation
  • BERNADETTE COSTELLO (OPERATIONS DIRECTOR): $53,434 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Prevent abortion by wearing a life-saving message.

What it reported doing in 2025

Life runners gained 792 new teammates in 2025. There were many events that took place throughout the year to prevent abortion with millions of life-saving messages. A-cross america relay had 10,000+ participants, started and ended at schools with students k to college. 100+ media and speaking events! Pope leo met with life runners, received a white remember the unborn jacket and team devotional. Teammates in 52 nations, including 3 new (burundi, portugal, ukraine). Billboards in downtown st. Louis and along interstate 80. Carried 18 banners at 37 marches and parades around the world. Flew banner over the university of Nebraska football stadium. Displayed team flag at auschwitz concentration camp in poland. Knights placed remember the unborn signs across Missouri. Ragbrai team biked across Iowa. Sponsored Nebraska personhood amendment, chooselifenow.net.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 98% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 67
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 56
  • Sustainability: 40
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 68.3%; rating input score 68
  • Program expense ratio: 72.5%; rating input score 73
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.84 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 80%; rating input score 80; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 22
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 6.1%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.07; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 54.8%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -2.7% per year; rating input score 0; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.4% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 20.8% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 68.3% of revenue deployed · 72.5% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 4 of 5 board members independent · 2 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $162K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $69K · 6 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 6 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 42/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 49/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 43/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 3/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.